Roses de Rêves, le Fantôme
by Vampiric Dragonrider
Summary: A Halloween party, Romeo and Juliet in English... How do these tie together? Kaiba doesn't believe in Love at first sight, but like Romeo, is he a victim? Completed Two Shot. Might add Alternate Ending later.
1. Act 1

**I got this idea for a oneshot after a) the Romeo and Juliet section in my English class combined with b) the Goo Goo Dolls song Let Love In (Listen to it, it's AWESOME!!!! GO GOO GOO DOLLS!!! WHOOO)**

**Oh, and an OC takes major part in this. If you don't like OCs, I beg of thee, give her a chance! I mean, it's Romeo and Juliet after all.**

**

* * *

**

_Two households, both alike in dignity,  
__(In far Verona, where we lay our scene),__  
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,__  
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.  
__From forth the fatal loins of these two foes  
A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life;__  
Whose misadventured piteous overthrows  
Doth with their death bury their parents' strife.  
The fearful passage of their death-marked love  
And the continuance of their parents' rage,  
Which, but their children's end, naught could remove,  
Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage;  
The which, if you with patient ears attend,  
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to men.

* * *

_

Seto Kaiba grumbled and finished reading the above passage out loud. He looked up at the teacher with an icy stare, who had made him read aloud the introduction to Romeo and Juliet, a book he cared naught for. And besides, someone had scratched out the word Verona and replaced it with Domino. Very _clever_, Someone, you know where you live.

"Thank you, Kaiba," the teacher said, trying not to shrink away from his stare. Ms. Dawson wrenched her eyes away from the sapphire icicles and looked at the rest of the class. "I wanted you all to hear that passage before we officially enter the Romeo and Juliet unit. Now, here's a question: Who here believes in love at first sight?"

The class shifted awkwardly, and a couple of people raised their hands. One girl raised her hand confidently. Kaiba smirked to himself. She probably had her mind warped by fairytales.

Ms. Dawson turned towards the aforementioned girl. "Iris, why do you believe in love at first sight?"

The girl blushed slightly, turning her cheeks a rich rose. "Well," she started hesitantly, "think about it. Wouldn't it be just a beautiful thing to love someone that much with only a glance?"

"You're thinking of lust at first sight," Kaiba cut in, smirking.

"You have yet to do even that, Moneybags," Joey retorted snidely.

"Wanna say that again?" Kaiba replied harshly, flashing a glare as cold as dry ice. Joey suppressed a shiver.

"Class!" Ms. Dawson cried out, exasperated. This happened almost everyday in this period! Why again did she leave America to teach a normal English Class to Japanese students!?

Oh yeah, she got fired from her first one, and this one offered to pay her more than her first job.

"Quiet down, you two," she snapped to Kaiba and Joey. "Or do I have to give you both detentions?"

Kaiba smirked and leaned back into his chair, his arms crossed. He said nothing. Joey growled to himself and also didn't reply.

"Since you're so supportive of debates today," she said to Kaiba, "give your reply to Iris Thorton's argument."

"Hn." Kaiba made a sound at the back of his throat that was something like a short chuckle. He leaned forward. "_Think about it_," he started, stressing the three words to remind the class that he was mocking the other student. He directed his reply towards Iris herself. "You see this really _hot_ guy at a party, per se. You know nothing about him, and when he looks at you, he knows nothing about you, but takes a liking to your appearance. Is that love or lust? Love only comes from knowing the other person. Lust is being drawn towards their face."

"What makes you the guru of love?" Iris retorted after a long, held pause. But her retort was too late; the words have already sunk into people's skulls, and it was totally useless. Her face heated up and she stopped talking.

* * *

Kassandra loved hosting parties. So, that same day, she used the Romeo and Juliet unit as an excuse to host an early Halloween costume party, with a Shakespeare twist. She also spread a rumor that if you came to her party, two people will fall in love. The blonde told everyone that it could be _you_ as she handed out invitations.

She even handed Seto Kaiba one. He had half a mind to just toss it in the recycle bin on his way out, but for some reason he shoved it in his backpack. Maybe it was a bout of laziness, but who knows.

So he brought his bag home only to have Mokuba ruffle through it in curiosity and read it, enticed by the bright graphics. And he somehow convinced his older brother to dress up and go.

That's how Seto Kaiba found himself in a Phantom of the Opera costume, with a long black cape, a dashing black outfit, and a white mask covering all but his mouth. He didn't want the half face one, because _then_ he'd be recognizable, he thought dryly. He used hair gel to slick back his hair, dyed black with temporary hair dye. He looked at himself in the mirror before nodding in approval before heading out. With a mask and a different hairstyle, he looked almost unrecognizable. His blue eyes glimmered dangerously behind the mask, and he swept his cape around him as he turned and strode from his mansion, but not before snatching a red rose.

Kassandra's house was on the other side of Domino City, so Seto Kaiba had one of his employees drive him there. When his sleek black car pulled up to the address, many teenagers were already there. He snorted at how big the turnout was, and still more cars were arriving. Everyone was in full costume. They had all probably rushed out to the nearest costume store and gotten something sexy and mysterious. There were black angels, white devils, Victorian suits and masks, vampire gowns, faces painted pale and faces decked out in makeup. A lot of people wore masks, actually. Kaiba definitely didn't stick out much.

Kassandra was greeting all of her guests, dressed in an old ball gown with a pretty hat with a plume and a glittery purple cat-eye mask. "Welcome gentlemen. Ladies that have their toes unplagued with corns will dance around with you. – Ah, my mistresses, which of you all will now deny to dance? She that coyly refuses, she, I'll swear, hath corns. Have I hit close to home?" On she went, acting like she was Lord Capulet's lady counterpart in the party scene. But when Seto Kaiba stepped up to the doorway, the room fell silent under his frown and mask.

Now, while he changed his hair and donned a mask, he did not change his height. He towered over the majority of the girls, and some of the guys, too. So the girls were wondering, "Who are _you_, Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome?" and the guys were thinking, "Who the hell are _you_, Mr. Tall, Dark, and Possible-Girl-Stealer?" Kaiba smirked slightly when he noticed no one recognized him. He nodded politely to Kassandra, who immediately resumed her chattering, and moved into the house. The party resumed as it had before. Snippets of conversation floated towards his ears, stuff about how hot "she" looked tonight, and how the music was loud but good, how the food was delicious, how they wished they could do spin the bottle so that the hormones could cool down.

Seto Kaiba the Phantom drifted into the basement, where the heart of the party was. In one corner, a stereo was hooked up to a sound system that was wired into the basement ceiling. On another side of the room, a long snack table stretched from end to end, covered in delightful bits such as a red punch bowl, cheese and ham cubes, crackers, tortilla chips and salsa, popcorn, candy corn, licorice and Swedish Fish, etc. Soft flame-shaped lights lined the walls like torches, making the lighting comfortably dim and romantic. The kids down here were laughing, singing along with the music loudly, dancing, and having a good time. Kaiba leaned against the wall and watched the busybodies.

A softer song with folk roots started playing. The teens groaned light-heartedly and picked partners to dance with. One girl didn't have one, and thus started to twirl in the center of the room with not a care in the world. She was wearing a gypsy-style outfit, with a long dusty red skirt with golden yellow designs on the bottom and a short, matching top with only one strap. Between the shirt and skirt was a translucent scarlet cloth, covering-but-not-really-covering her midriff. The same material formed long billowy sleeves that started on her triceps and ended at her wrist. She also had a piece of that cloth covering her mouth and nose, hooking at her ears. Her honey-colored hair was done up in a high bun with two chunks of hair left deliberately out to frame her face. She wore a thing on her forehead that was made of gold spikes and a red gem in the center, traveling all around her head to clasp in the back. She wore a lot of eye make-up, making her amber eyes pop, and she wore gold sandals on her feet.

A guy dressed in a black and gold medieval prince's costume came forward and took her hand. She blushed coyly and agreed to dance with him. Seto Kaiba watched them aimlessly, reminding him of something pleasant. And then, she looked up into the Phantom's blue eyes.

It was a peculiar feeling, no doubt, that came over him in that brief moment. It was completely foreign, yet strangely familiar. It sent a shiver down his spine, yet it settled warm fuzzies in his heart. In that short few seconds, time slowed to a crawl. Something, some _emotion_, entered him and made his heart flutter against his ribcage. Sweet venom, poisonous honey, it bled through his veins and arteries, and he took in a sharp breath. Those amber eyes said made him feel something that no one else, nothing else save for Mokuba, could make him feel. And then he knew what it was, this sensation.

He had fallen in love at first sight.

He cursed silently for being such a hypocrite, but he whispered out loud, quoting Romeo and Juliet, "O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright. Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear. So shows a snowy dove trooping with crows as yonder lady o'er her fellows shows. Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight, For I never saw a true beauty until this night."

Near him, with his friend in a Caesar outfit and him in a Brutus one, Joey Wheeler heard Kaiba's voice. It was too low for him to distinguish any words, but he recognized that voice anywhere. He said to Yugi, "Moneybags is here, he's bound to ruin everything! We should go stop him."

"Relax, Joey," Yugi said quickly. "Kaiba's not that type of person. At least not for parties. I don't think he's going to do anything tonight."

"But Yugi…" Joey protested.

"Shush," Yugi interrupted. "Let's go upstairs, before _you_ ruin the party." That being said, Yugi pushed his friend up the stairs to the other half of the festivity. The song ended soon after that, and the Prince and the honey-haired girl broke apart and disappeared into the scattering crowd. The Phantom watched her carefully, secretly glad that she and the Prince were going separate ways. He snuck around the edge of the crowd until he caught her approaching the snack table. He grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the punch bowl to the side of the crowd, as far away from prying eyes as he could get.

"What's this that takes my hand?" she asked, surprised. She looked up to see determined sapphire eyes behind a white mask. She remembered them from a few moments earlier, and her heart fluttered giddily. She had seen him when she was dancing, and had immediately been captivated. Love at first sight, could it really exist?

"My unworthy hand holds this holy shrine, too ugly for this beauty," softly said the Phantom.

"Good sir, you do wrong your hand too much," sweetly replied the Gypsy. "For saints have hands that pilgrims' hands do touch."

The Phantom smiled softly and dropped his hands. "I feel like we're quoting Romeo and Juliet, some cheesy play or movie."

The Gypsy smiled back at the stranger. "Real life can be cheesy too," she said. "Sometimes those are the best parts, because cheesiness has happy endings."

"Is that so?" he mused. They locked fingers, holding hands palm to palm. They swayed to the music for a little bit before the Phantom bent down, pulled down the cloth covering her mouth, and brushed his smooth lips against hers. "And thus with a kiss, my sin is purged."

She saw where this was going, and replied lightly, "and I receive your sin."

He smiled slightly and said, "That can't be it, let me have my sin again," and he pressed his lips against hers again.

Kassandra came down the stairs and stood on the last step. "Hey, everyone!" she shouted, her blonde curls bouncing. Everyone looked up at her. "Karaoke upstairs! Come one, come all!" The crowd cheered and started streaming upstairs.

Another girl, presumably a friend of hers, pulled the Gypsy away from the Phantom, saying, "Let's go, Isis, karaoke sounds like fun!" The Gypsy looked at her friend and nodded, glancing back behind her with a question in her eye at the Phantom. The question was easily readable. _Who are you?_

The Phantom winked, but said nothing. Iris was pulled away, and she lost sight of him.

Kaiba stood there, thinking over his actions of the night. What had come over him? What had made him kiss that girl, Iris, who displeased him so? He thought of her face tonight, and pleasurable shivers shook his spin. There has definitely been a change of attitude on his part, but what made him do it? It seemed impossible that the tall, dark young man could ever love anyone apart from his little brother. And yet, here is a disguised girl who stole his heart with a single glance. O, what a hypocrite was he! An unbeliever in love at first sight, yet a victim all the same!

The basement was totally empty now, besides him. Everyone went upstairs to laugh and be merry with karaoke. He swept up the stairs and snuck outside without anyone noticing him. He blended into the night like a raven, his cape billowing out behind him as he headed home, lost in his thoughts.

He wasn't the only one lost in thoughts that night. Iris couldn't speak with curiosity. Who was the Phantom? Who was he that made her heart quiver with a glance? She imagined him from before, and she felt faint. She was dying to know. Her friend asked what was up, but she shook her head and walked away.

She found Joey and Yugi, and decided to ask them. She needed to find out, so maybe someone knew. She figured she'd start with the nicest people she knew.

"Hey, Yugi, Joey," she said shyly. The looked at her curiously.

"What's up?" Joey asked.

"W-well…" Iris started, poking her two index fingers together. "I need to know who this one guy was, 'cause he was wearing a mask and I'm dying to know his identity."

"Describe him," Yugi offered, "maybe we can help."

"Well, for one, he was wearing a white mask that covered all but his mouth…" Oh, his mouth! His lips were just perfect. "And he had a black cape and a red rose. Like Phantom of the Opera, ya know?"

Joey and Yugi shared glances. "You sure you got the right guy?" Joey asked incredulously.

"Yeah, who is he?" she pressed. Who? Who?

"Er, well," Joey stammered. "That was Seto Kaiba. But I don't think he wanted anyone to know he was here. I'd stay away from him if I were you."

Iris subconsciously put two fingers lightly on her lips. "Oh crud, my only love born from my only hate! Too early unseen, known too late!"

"Iris, what are you talking about?" Yugi inquired.

"O-oh, nothing," Iris said hurriedly. With an eagerness to get away, she pushed through the crowd to the outside world. She slid out of her sandals so that she could run faster. Tears from an unknown source started to spill from her lids, but she didn't wipe them away. How could she have let this happen? She shared not one, but two kisses with the coldest, cruelest guy in school. She stopped to catch her breath in the chilly October air and moaned, "I fell in love with someone completely opposite from me who doesn't even believe in love at first sight! Oh, that hypocrite! I bet he did it to tease me or something. But perhaps not…" She stopped and stood up straight. "He didn't look like he was false."

Warm hands suddenly grasped her arms, and she let out a short scream before the spun her around, and she could see a white mask glinting in the lamplight. Before she could catch herself, she gasped, "Seto Kaiba!"

The Phantom nodded and pulled his mask away from his face. His fair, sharp features glowed in the dim lighting as Iris felt her face grow warm with hot blood. Storm clouds boiled up ahead, letting a few warning drops fall before spilling the bucket.

"Yes, it's me," he said, tracing her arms until his hands held hers. A car with too-bright headlights drove by and briefly illuminated them.

"It's raining," she said softly before blushing even harder. God, how stupid could she be!? This guy was fooling with her mind.

In answer, Seto Kaiba pulled her under the line of trees. Moving her so that her back was at a tree trunk, he leaned down and kissed her. It was longer than the previous two, and Iris treasured the sweetness. O, his very scent excited her, and even as she closed her eyes against his blinding beauty, her heart squirmed happily.

He pulled away and whispered in her ear, "Love at first sight is still a lie, isn't it?"

"But it isn't first sight," she murmured back. "You've seen me all year so far."

He chuckled softly. "Yes, indeed." A sleek black car arrived at the curb and a man stepped out. Kaiba recognized him immediately, and said to her "I have to go. That's my driver."

Iris nodded and watched him sprint towards the man. She tried to think about what she knew about him, but all she got was the magic and the mystery.

His hair was already much browner when he stooped into the car, the dye washing out in the rain. He sighed contentedly in the back seat. His driver looked at him in the review mirror. "Did you have a nice time, Mr. Kaiba?" he asked cautiously.

Kaiba stared out the window. He said, almost inaudibly, "You can only imagine."

_End of Act 1

* * *

_**Well, it was GOING to be a oneshot, but it got so long, I'm making it a twoshot. I might make a slightly different one that uses mostly the actual cast of characters from Yugioh, but Iris was already made and handy, and thanks for giving her a shot!  
**


	2. Act 2

_A glooming peace this morning with it brings.  
The sun for sorrow will not show his head.  
Go hence to have more talk of these sad things.  
Some shall be pardoned, and some punished.  
For never was a story of more woe  
That this of Juliet and her Romeo.

* * *

_

Kaiba sighed and snapped the rose colored book closed and traced the black cursive lettering with his fingers. So that's what happened with Romeo and Juliet. They died pitifully. What wimps.

But then he thought of the "Gypsy" from the night before and sighed again, pinching his nose. What he had felt when he looked into Iris' eyes could only be what Romeo felt when he looked at Juliet. Did that mean that he was doomed to face what Romeo did?

He shook his head quickly. Romeo and Juliet was only a story, drawn from the mind of a master playwright. But then he remembered it was based off of two real lovers, who died for each other in 1303 (REAL FACT). A wild thought passed through his mind: What if they were reincarnations of these two people? And then he thought: That's ridiculous. Egypt is enough.

Kaiba yawned and looked at the clock. It was early morning; he had spent the night reading the play. He decided a few hours of sleep was better than none at all, so he laid his head down on his pillow and closed his eyes, aching with fatigue. He was asleep in no time.

Mokuba crept into his room. Yes, his brother was asleep, finally. On the bed near him was the book he had to read in English class. The raven-haired boy picked up the book and looked at the first few lines, but could not understand the old English. Billy the Bard certainly did enjoy confusing the readers with "thee" and "thous" and "Do you bite your thumb at me, sir".

The young Kaiba looked at Seto's sleeping face. Something had changed when he came home earlier that night, and he had yet to decide if it was for better or for worse. For one, Seto Kaiba seemed gentler, more lighthearted, even. Mokuba pondered upon this while gazing at his brother's face. Then, a slow, knowing smile spread across the young boy's face. He knew, he knew the answer.

His brother was in love! The impossible had happened. Mokuba silently whooped for joy and crept back out of the room and back to his still-warm bed.

English class, the next day. Ms. Dawson dreaded going to _that_ class. The one with Seto Kaiba, Iris Thorton, and Joey Wheeler. Those three were opposites in three ways, and they _always_ caused an uproar, every day, every single frickin' day.

However, as she entered the classroom, she found Iris waiting for her, with a worried look on her face.

"Anything wrong, Iris?"

Iris looked up, surprised. "N-no," she said quickly.

Ms. Dawson seriously doubted the young girl's answer, but didn't press. If she wanted to tell her anything, she will when she was ready. Ms. Dawson sighed and readied her papers at her desk. The students by now should have read the first three scenes in the book. The bell rang, and the children began streaming into the classroom.

"Okay, I'd like to start an activity today," she started, before she was rudely interrupted by Kaiba entering the room in a frazzled manner. He handed her a late slip.

"Mokuba turned off my alarm clock," he said simply. Ms. Dawson took that as an apology and nodded towards his seat.

"As I was saying…" Ms. Dawson coughed and continued. "Today in class, we will read Act 1 Scene 4 and do an activity on Queen Mab. Now, I need a Benvolio, a Mercutio, and a Romeo to read it. Any volunteers?"

Iris immediately raised her hand, and Ms. Dawson appointed her to be Mercutio. Joey eagerly raised his hand also, and was assigned Benvolio. The teacher looked around the room, but there were no more volunteers. She sighed, pinched her nose and, hoping for the best, assigned Romeo's part to Kaiba.

To her massive – and I mean _massive_ – surprise, the haughty CEO did not argue, merely grumbled and stood in the middle of the classroom with the other two students. Joey looked disgruntled, but Iris looked passive. The girl was still unsure of how to react in public to last night.

"Yes, well," Ms. Dawson stuttered, unsure of what to do with the surprising passiveness of the three usually opposite forces. "You may begin."

The three students performed actually quite well. Indeed, they were not going to make it big on Broadway, but they were better than some, who read theirs with flat monotones.

While they read, the teacher noticed that Iris and Kaiba were getting along quite well, better than yesterday, no doubt. Joey clearly did not like the CEO's presence, but as long as the taller brunette didn't start anything, the blond didn't have an excuse to start bickering. But what really gave her a headache was how Kaiba and Iris could have changed overnight. She looked around the class and remembered seeing some slips of paper hanging around. There had been a party last night, she recalled. Of course! But that's not possible, is it? That kind of stuff only happened in stories, in Romeo and Juliet. Impossible, she said to herself. I'm taking this in entirely the wrong way.

Iris started saying her monologue about Queen Mab, the queen of dreams, and Kaiba's head snapped up. Ms. Dawson noticed something in his eyes that she hadn't noticed before… or had been absent. Apparently, so did Joey, and he looked strangely at the CEO. Finally, the scene ended with Benvolio saying, "Strike, drum," and the three students returned to their seats.

Ms. Dawson found it took a minute to regain her voice and to start the activity. She just hoped the rest of her day wouldn't be as stressful.

The bell rang, signaling the end of English. Joey dragged Yugi out of the classroom quickly to talk about the day so far (namely Kaiba), but Ms. Dawson called out, "Iris, Kaiba, could you stay please?"

Curious, Kaiba stayed, and Iris did also. They stood side by side in front of the teacher's desk. Kaiba felt the girl's heat radiate off of her skin, and his heart trembled giddily, making him feel a bit faint, but not in a bad way. He was overcome with a sudden urge to sweep her up and kiss her violently, but he restrained himself. These feelings were so surreal; they should just stay in the fairytales where they belonged.

"You two," Ms. Dawson started. "Something happened last night at the party. Yes, I know about it, but it's out of my hands, what you kids do these days," she added at their confused glances. "I'd like to know what."

"Is something wrong?" Iris asked timidly.

"No, no, nothing _wrong_, just…" Ms. Dawson paused as she searched for the right word. "Different. Something's really different about you two. Usually, you bicker and make this class a living hell for me, but you guys seem so passive right now."

"Er, well…" Iris stopped and spared a glance towards Kaiba, who looked contemplative. "I, um, we…"

"It's nothing," Kaiba interrupted.

"It's okay, you can tell me," Ms. Dawson pressed. She was sooooooo curious. She just had to know. Kaiba looked at Iris, who looked back into his eyes. He was sure she was feeling the same way he was when he looked at her. He looked back at the teacher, who had a look of understanding plastered on her face. "I get it now," she whispered. "You two… Fairytale… Romeo and Juliet?" Her words became detached and undecipherable. But she knew. Kaiba stiffened. She knew.

"Can you keep a secret?" he asked her. The teacher looked into his cold blue eyes, but they didn't seem so cold as before.

"I'll keep it with my life," she promised. The minute bell rang. "You two get to class, sorry for keeping you."

* * *

School wound down for the afternoon, leaving Iris tired. She was about to leave when she felt a strong, warm hand pull her to the deserted side of the building. She looked up into familiar blue eyes and was immediately revitalized. She stood on tiptoe and pecked his lips.

Kaiba smiled softly and held her close. "Forbidden love," he whispered. "Ah, how tantalizing."

"Tempting," she corrected him, and he smiled again.

"The forbidden fruit brought Eve her demise," he said. His deep voice was heaven to her ears.

"But that fruit _was_ delicious," she replied. He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. She realized that he was being careful, wanting only to please. He started to pull away, but she put a hand on his neck and forcefully planted a kiss on his mouth. Her heart was floating miles above her head, and she was sure his was too.

But harsh voices broke through their Eden. They jerked apart in time for Joey and Yugi to round the corner, with Yugi saying, "I don't see what your problem is…"

They stopped, and Yugi let out a little "Oh."

"See the problem we have here?" Joey pointed out to his short friend. "This is just one of the many things that point to the apocalypse in 2012!"

"Joey, that's not for a while," Iris said slowly. She noticed that she and Kaiba were still quite close in proximity, so she took a hesitant step away. She didn't want to leave that warm body, but… forbidden love had its cons too.

"And that might not even exist," Kaiba said harshly, narrowing his eyes.

"Eh, what were you guys doing back here, anyway?" Yugi asked tentatively. Iris frowned. How were they going to get out of this mess?

"Why do you care?" she snapped instead. She didn't know about Yugi, but she was sure Joey wouldn't take lightly to the blossoming romance happening right under their noses.

"Joey, maybe we should leave them alone," Yugi said under the two pairs of glaring eyes, tugging on his friend's sleeve.

"I want to know what's going on here!" he argued.

"Joey," Kaiba said quietly and murderously, "if you don't want any serious bodily harm to befall you, I suggest you leave." Iris shivered at the tone, and was glad it wasn't directed at her.

Joey's eyes actually widened. Not because of fear, but because Kaiba had neither called him Wheeler, nor called him Mutt. Something was different, and he was going to find out. Yugi continually tugged on his sleeve, and finally he said, "Fine, let's go." With a hard backwards glance, the two left the grounds unscathed.

Iris looked back at Kaiba, speechless. What now?

Kaiba sighed and looked at her. "I think we best be going home," he said. "I have to pick up my brother."

Iris nodded dumbly, and watched the taller boy walk away. She waited a minute in the shade of the school before walking home.

* * *

Joey sat down with his friend Yugi. The blond looked around the fast food restaurant and, satisfied that they wouldn't be disturbed, turned to the spiky-haired borderline midget. "There's something going on between Kaiba and Iris," he said seriously in a low tone.

"Maybe it's love," Yugi said absently, sipping his milkshake. Joey had been ranting all day.

"But Kaiba is physically unable to love!" Joey rebutted. Yugi rolled his eyes. This again. "It has to be something else!"

"Or it could be love," Yugi pressed. "Remember Romeo and Juliet?" Joey nodded his head only slightly. He was never one for reading Shakespearian. "Well, they fell in love at first sight, without a moment's notice. It could've happened at that party last night."

"But that kind of stuff only happens in fairytales!" Joey protested.

"So does magic," Yugi said sleepily. The day was sooooo hot, he thought. "But there's a Pharaoh from ancient Egypt occupying my mind.

"Touché," Joey said. He paused, thinking up new arguments. Before he could say anything, Yugi exclaimed, "Look, it's the Kaibas!"

Joey looked over and saw Mokuba and Seto Kaiba enter the fast food restaurant. Mokuba had apparently persuaded the older boy to bring him here. The elder Kaiba didn't even notice them as they joined the queue at the register. Joey grinned evilly. This was a perfect opportunity to corner Kaiba. He waited until they had a table before approaching them. He placed both hands on the table, preventing any easy escape. The two Kaiba brothers looked up in surprise.

"So, Kaiba," Joey said, feeling like a judge in court. "Tell me, what is your relationship with Iris Thorton?"

Kaiba snorted. "What, so your suspicions have made you jealous?"

Joey took a moment to reply, before confirming in his mind that he felt drawn to Iris in a more cousin-like way. Happened to a lot of people he wasn't close friends to, actually. "I am not jealous," he snapped. Kaiba rolled his eyes in a disbelieving way, but didn't reply. "I think something fishy is going on between you two."

Great, Kaiba thought, now the Mutt was after him and Iris. Couldn't the world leave them alone? But then again, Fate's cruel hands twisted Romeo and Juliet's lives. Since their stories were so eerily similar, it wouldn't be impossible.

"So tell me," Joey pressed, "what is it?"

"Hey, if my brother doesn't want to talk, leave him alone!" Mokuba cut in. He didn't care where his brother's happiness came from, just as long as it was there. Joey glanced at Mokuba, but otherwise ignored him.

"Kaiba," Joey continued. "What were you doing after school with…"

"I said leave him alone!" Mokuba shouted, standing up.

"Mokuba," Kaiba said softly. The black-haired boy looked back at him, his eyes stinging.

"Seto, I just want you to be happy," he said. The young Kaiba turned his glare back at Joey. "Leave us alone, Wheeler," he said angrily.

If this was any other person, Joey would have punched the guy. But it wasn't, it was Mokuba, younger and weaker. But he refused to give up.

"I want some answers!" he shouted.

"Joey," Yugi protested, "not here, in the public."

"Men's eyes were made to stare, so let them," the blond growled. Suddenly, a very angry black fluff-ball barreled into him. Mokuba knocked him down unexpectedly.

"Mokuba, no!" Kaiba shouted, standing up as his little brother brawl it out with the older enemy. Yugi tried and failed to tear the flailing kids apart. Mokuba threw punches, but Joey blocked them and didn't fight back too hard, suppressing his bullying instincts. He didn't want to hurt the kid, but this was too much! He picked him up and hurled him away. Mokuba rolled on the linoleum, jarred but relatively unscathed.

Kaiba, however, would not stand for it. Joey got to his feet only to be hit backwards with the CEO's fist in his jaw. The blond retaliated by socking him in the stomach. Momentarily stunned, Kaiba wheezed and struggled to keep standing. Joey took this chance to escape to the outside. As much as he believed in his strength, he wasn't so sure he could win in a fist fight with Kaiba.

But the tall brunette followed him outside. Yugi stayed behind to care for Mokuba, but perhaps Joey would need more care.

"Don't you dare ever lay a hand on my little brother!" Kaiba roared fiercely. He aimed another punch at Joey, but it was dodged and he got struck in the jaw instead. He bit his tongue and cursed when he tasted blood. Without a moment's hesitation, he swung his leg around and knocked Joey aside with a kick. The fast food restaurant's manager rushed outside at that time and broke up the fight.

"Okay you two ruffians!" she shouted hoarsely. "Break it up and get the hell away from my shop!" As the manager stalked back in, Yugi and Mokuba appeared. Mokuba immediately went to Kaiba, and Yugi approached Joey.

"Big brother," Mokuba moaned.

"Are you hurt?" Kaiba asked.

Mokuba shook his head. "No, I'm fine, but are you alright?"

His tongue and jaw were sore, and he was short on breath, but he assured his brother that he was fine.

"Seto…" Mokuba said hesitantly. "That Iris girl, you like her, don't you?"

Kaiba froze and looked over to Joey and Yugi. They had not overheard anything, or at least that was how it seemed. "Where did you hear about that?"

"In your and Joey's argument," Mokuba said, "he mentioned a girl. You like her, right?"

Kaiba sighed and ran a hand through his chestnut hair. "Yeah, I suppose so…"

Mokuba grinned and hugged his brother tightly. "I knew you'd find someone."

Joey looked up, regretting his choices as he watched Mokuba embrace his brother. But then Téa ran up, out of breath.

"You guys!" she gasped loudly. "It's Iris, she's…!"

"What's wrong?" Everyone looked towards Kaiba, who had stood abruptly. Téa raised an eyebrow at him, but continued.

"She's been in a pretty bad accident!" she explained. "She's in the hospital, unconscious. She might not wake up anytime soon, it's really bad." She stumbled when someone pushed past her. She was surprised to find that it was Seto Kaiba, heading – no, _sprinting_ – towards the hospital. "What's up with him?"

"I've just figured it out," Joey said, his brow furrowed. "He must really like her."

They looked at the retreating figure and contemplated for a few seconds at how that was possible. But it was too late now, they agreed. The quickly followed the star-crossed teenager.

* * *

At the hospital, Kaiba stopped only long enough to find her room number. How could he finally be so happy, only to have it wrenched away from him? Was he truly cursed, like Romeo and Juliet?

He raced to her room, ignoring the displeased shouts from the nurses and doctors in the hallway. He burst into her room, and stopped in horror, his heart stopping with him. His beloved Iris, what a sight! How could such an evil fate befall her? He looked at the heart monitor, beeping slowly but steadily. He sat in the stiff white chair and leaned over her bed to hold the hand nearest to him. His heartbeat felt feeble, only slightly reenergized by her cold hand.

A doctor came in and looked at him. "You her boyfriend?" she asked. Kaiba shrugged, and the female doctor didn't press.

"What happened?" Kaiba asked hoarsely.

The doctor shifted through the papers on her clipboard before answering. "A car crash. She was on a bus, and the bus got hit with a truck. One of her lungs has been punctured, and she might not make it through the night." She looked at the brunette, unaware of who he was. She saw pain in his eyes before he wrenched them away, back towards the honey-haired girl. "I'm sorry," she said apologetically. "It seems a shame such a young girl should have her life cut so short." She watched him for a moment before leaving the room to let them be.

Outside, a short spikey-haired kid, a tall blond, a brunette girl, and a younger black-haired kid arrived breathless. "What's happening in there?" the blond asked.

The doctor smiled sadly. "Are you Iris Thorton's friends?" she asked. They nodded quickly. "Well, another kid stormed in there a minute ago, and I've told him what's happened. Miss Thorton might not make it through the night."

The group of teens (and tween) looked heartbroken. The doctor smiled a little at them again before going off to get some medicine for her other patients.

Yugi, Téa, Joey, and Mokuba stood in the doorway, watching Kaiba as he sat hunched over with his head in his hands. Mokuba was the first to approach him, putting a small hand on the elder's arm.

"Big brother," he said softly, "let's go…"

Kaiba looked at him. His face was eerily calm. "What?" he asked quietly.

"Let's go," Mokuba repeated. "I don't think you really want to be here…" He trailed off, losing words to say by the second. Kaiba understood what his little brother was trying to do, though, and stood up and followed him out of the room. He didn't even acknowledge the other three people there.

Yugi had to admit, it was very strange seeing the cold, the ruthless Seto Kaiba acting this way. He almost suspected magic, that something had interfered, but he knew that wasn't it. But something still felt off. He was pretty sure Kaiba wasn't one of those people who would just – dare he say it? – fall in love at first sight.

Yugi entered the room, looking at Iris before moving to the window, where outside he saw Kaiba and his brother walking slowly away from the hospital. He knew that as long as Mokuba was there, Kaiba would find reason to live, even if Iris didn't make it.

A loud frantic beeping drew his attention away from the window. The doctor from before as well as a few nurses raced in, crowding around Iris.

"What's happening?" he asked, terrified.

"Her heart, it's giving out," one of the nurses told him. Yugi's eyes grew wide in horror.

"Clear!" someone shouted, and a zapping sound could be heard. This happened a few times, but alas, it was not enough. The heart monitor changed its blips to one long pitch. Iris was… dead.

Screams could be heard from outside, as well as gunshots. Yugi whirled around and ducked as the window broke. The rest of the room's occupants rushed to the window also. This was happening much to fast! Yugi could only define that thought as his head buzzed faster than lightning.

Outside, a madman had broken away from prison, and he was wielding a machine gun. He was mowing down anyone he saw.

"Kaiba!" Yugi shouted frantically, turning around and pushing past the people to run outside. His friends followed him without hesitation, though only to try and make _him_ hesitate.

By the time they had gotten outside, the police had already arrived and taken the madman. They were tracking him, and had responded to the screams in record time. But Yugi followed a pained moaning to a shadowed alleyway and stopped in his tracks.

Kaiba was there, his hands covered in blood as he tried to stop the bleeding that was coming out of Mokuba's chest. And… he was crying. Tears spilled from his eyes as he looked up at Yugi.

"He's dead," he moaned. "My only brother, the only person I have loved for a long time, he's…" He voice choked up and he couldn't say anymore. Joey, and Téa caught up, and understood immediately when they saw the clear liquid fall from the cold man's eyes.

"Oh no," Téa whispered. This whole ordeal seemed… surreal. Like this shouldn't be happening. But the frozen, snow-packed truth hit them like a rocket. A few paramedics found them and took Mokuba's body away, despite Seto's frantic pleas. The threesome of friends followed the paramedics until when they looked back, all they saw was the swish of Seto's cloak to let them know he had left.

* * *

Seto had a determined look on his face as he marched away from the apothecary, a small vial clenched tightly in his fist. Yugi and his two friends were still there, in the hospital entrance, when he arrived, but he forcefully pushed past them. They wondered what he was doing, but he was moving to fast for them to keep up. They could only guess at where he was going, and tried to beat him to it.

Seto first stopped at the Morgue. He gently scooped up his little brother's body and carried it with him to the elevator. It was luckily empty, despite the hospital's sudden business, and he stood like a statue as he waited for the lift to stop. When it did, he marched rapidly towards the memorized room number, the room that still held Iris' body. How he knew she was dead, no one could figure out. But he did, and that's where he went.

It was empty, but doctors were chasing him, trying to get him to stop whatever he was doing. He turned around and locked the door.

As the doctors tried viciously to open it, he turned towards the bed. He carefully set Mokuba's corpse down and lifted Iris' up instead, taking away any wires that had her attached to the bed.

New fists banged on the door. "Kaiba, open up!" Yugi screamed. Seto looked up, his eyes dead with unfeeling.

"There's no more point," he said, loud enough for the people on the other side to hear. "There's no more to life."

"But what about your company!?" Téa tried. But Seto didn't answer. Instead, he looked at Iris' closed eyes and gently kissed her cold dead lips. He slumped to the floor where Mokuba was and cradled his head and kissed his forehead.

With the only two people he had loved in this world, he took out the stopper in the vial and took a fatal gulp. "And thus with a kiss, I die!" he yelled triumphantly. He hugged the two corpses tightly as he felt the poison sweep through his body, his aching heart strongly thumping it around. His breathing grew short, but he was happy. He grinned at the door as Joey finally took charge and thrust through the window with his fist. The doctors swarmed in, but it was too late.

The scene was a sad one. Against the wall sat Seto Kaiba, hugging Mokuba Kaiba and Iris Thorton. Yugi and Téa embraced each other and started to cry at the lifeless forms while Joey just stood shell shocked.

The CEO had taken his life so quickly when the other two had died. But now they were together, at wherever the deads' spirits go to, somewhere happy. However, they were totally gone, and the others had seen it happen. They supposed they should feel a bit better; after all, Seto lost everything in a few short minutes. His life would have been bitter if he stayed. But a world without the ruthless brunette… How? How?

Him and innocent Mokuba and young Iris. Dead and gone, buried together, alone but for each other.

_A glooming peace this morning with it brings.  
The sun for sorrow will not show his head.  
Go hence to have more talk of these sad things.  
Some shall be pardoned, and some punished.  
For never was a story of more woe  
That this of Iris and her Kaiba Seto._

_End of Act 2_

_

* * *

_**You know, the actual Romeo and Juliet story took place over four days. I did it in two. then again, I left out the marriage and the banishment, yadda yadda yadda.**

**Hope you enjoyed. If not, just don't say anything. It was nice to complete something for a change. And if you did enjoy it, tell me your feelings when you read it. I want to know how readers feel. Just curious. Thanks!  
**


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